Third party verification system

ABSTRACT

A verification system for obtaining, storing and providing access to information regarding a commitment or position of an individual or entity. In one embodiment the verification system comprises an interactive voice response system or computer program interface capable of obtaining and recording information regarding any of a number of commitments from an individual or entity, such as a commitment to change long distance telephone service providers. The verification system comprises a voice response unit configured to query pertinent information from an individual and record the responses to the queries in a digital format. Upon completion of a successful session, the voice response unit forwards the recorded responses confirming consent, to a storage device, such as a computer server. As desired, the recorded responses can be retrieved from the server by telephone or computer for verification of the consent, commitment, or position of the individual or entity.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of divisional applicationSer. No. 10/043,868 entitled filed Nov. 1, 2001 “Automated Third PartyVerification System”, now issued U.S. Pat. No. 6,990,454, which is adivisional application Ser. No. 09/957,417, filed Sep. 20, 2001 ofissued U.S. Pat. No. 6,401,066 entitled “Automated Third PartyVerification System”.

A detailed description of the present invention is provided below inconjunction with FIGS. 1–12.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the participants in a third partyverification process.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a third party verification system.

FIG. 3 is a sample record of the third party verification system.

FIG. 4 is an operational flow diagram of an example process forobtaining third party verification via a telephone connection.

FIG. 5 is a detailed operational flow diagram of an example process forobtaining third party verification via a telephone connection.

FIG. 6 is an operational flow diagram of an example process forobtaining third party verification via a computer connection.

FIG. 7 is an operational flow diagram of an example general process forretrieving third party verification via a telephone connection.

FIG. 8 is an operational flow diagram of an example process forretrieving third party verification via a computer connection.

FIG. 9 is a detailed operational flow diagram of an example process forretrieving third party verification via a computer connection.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are operational flow diagram of an example process forthird party verification including speech pattern recognition.

FIG. 11 is a combined flowchart and data flow diagram 1100 illustratingvarious components used to implement an enrollment process according tothe invention.

FIG. 12 is a combined block diagram and data flow diagram illustratingvarious components that can be used to implement systems and methods forverifying that a consumer seeking to transact with a merchant using anaccount is authorized to use that account.

DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

Overview of the Invention

In general, the present invention comprises a method and apparatus forobtaining, recording, storing, and retrieving third party verificationof a statement or intent of an individual or entity. In one embodiment,the system of the present invention comprises a voice response unitcapable of automatically receiving a call and presenting a number ofquestions to one or more individuals on the opposing end(s) of the line.The VRU records the responses to the questions in a digital format, andsubsequently stores and catalogs the responses by reference number on aserver or other mass storage device. Stored responses provideverification of the answers to questions posed by the voice responseunit.

Individuals having access may retrieve the stored verifications from theserver via a telephone retrieval system or a computer interface such asthe Internet. Stored responses confirm consent and thereby confirm andbind the recorded party to their statements.

Example Environment

Although other applications are possible, one example environment inwhich the subject invention can be implemented is a third partyverification system as mandated by the Federal Communication Commission(FCC) anti-slamming provisions. In the example environment describedherein, the present invention serves as a third party verificationsystem for a long distance telephone service provider (the client)desiring to contact potential customers to gain market share. Ingeneral, long distance service providers desiring to increase marketshare call potential customers in hopes of convincing them to leavetheir existing long distance company. Upon confirming that the potentialcustomer is interested in changing long distance companies, the customeris connected to the third party verification system so that the thirdparty verification system described herein may obtain and permanentlyrecord the customer's verbal consent to the switch.

Next, the system stores the recorded vocal affirmation of the customer'sdesire to change long distance telephone service providers. The systemstores the recording in digital form on a computer server so that it maybe readily retrieved at a later date to thereby provide confirmationthat the change in long distance service providers was indeedauthorized.

To retrieve the customer's recorded consent an authorized party, such asthe client, can retrieve or download the data via telephone or acustomized Internet web server configured to access the voice recording.

Of course, this is but one possible environment of the presentinvention. Other possible environments that would benefit from theadvantages of the present invention include, but are not limited to,other non-regulated or semi-regulated utilities such as electricutilities, cable utilities, cellular service providers, Internet serviceproviders and the like. Other industries that may likewise benefitinclude any industry where products or services or offered or sold viatelephone or computer such that some form of recorded statement, such asan agreement to provide remuneration in exchange for a product orservice, would benefit from the present invention. Other envisionedareas of use include polling, petition drives, telephone stock trading,voting, collection agencies, environments where confirmation is legallyrequired, travel agents or airlines booking travel itineraries andtickets, mortgage brokers, banks, automotive or other vehicle servicedepartments or any other entity requiring some form of verification.

First Embodiment

Although the present invention may be configured for use in numerousdifferent fields, for purposes of understanding the present invention isdescribed in a configuration of a third party verification system asused by long distance telephone service providers attempting to increasemarket share by direct calling telesales.

FIG. 1 illustrates the relationship between a long distance telephoneservice provider (L.D.T.S.P.) 110, a potential customer 120, and thethird party verification system 130. In this embodiment, the L.D.T.S.P.110 is the client. The client is defined herein as the party,individual, or entity that requires third party verification and isresponsible for initiating the verification recording process. In otherembodiments the client may include but is not limited to, a pollster, amagazine subscription seller, seller, utility, order taker or otherparty described above desiring some form of verification of atransaction, statement or agreement at a later date.

It is contemplated that, in one embodiment, the L.D.T.S.P. 110 performstelesales at a location remote from the potential customer 120 and fromthe third party verification system 130. The L.D.T.S.P. 110 would thuscontact potential customers 120 by telephone, and upon obtainingcustomer consent to change long distance company, the L.D.T.S.P. wouldcontact the third party verification system 130. Eventually the customeris connected to the third party verification system so that consent tothe change in telephone service can be permanently recorded for laterverification. Hence, communication occurs between each of the threeentities 110, 120, and 130.

After obtaining verifiable consent to change long distance serviceproviders, another verification requesting entity 140 or the customer120 may request verification of the consent to change long distancecompanies. Accordingly, communication between the L.D.T.S.P. 110 and thethird party verification system 130 occurs. In an alternativeembodiment, the verification requesting entity 140 may directly contactthe third party verification system 130.

In an alternative arrangement, an agent (not shown) performs telesaleson behalf of the L.D.T.S.P. 110, thereby allowing the agent and thethird party verification system 130 to be co-located.

FIG. 2 illustrates one example configuration of the third partyverification system of the subject invention. As shown, a network 210forms a center hub to facilitate communication between: one or moreservers 212, 214, and 216; one or more voice response units (VRU) 218,220, and 222; one or more Internet servers 230; and various othersupport hardware (not shown). If remote from the third partyverification system, the L.D.T.S.P. 110 connects via a high capacitydedicated line 232 to a voice response unit of the third partyverification system. Alternatively, the L.D.T.S.P. 110 may connect via astandard telephone communication line 234 to the PSTN 240, the PSTN inturn connecting to the voice response unit 218.

Each voice response unit 218 provides automated answering, voiceresponse and dual tone multi-frequency (DTMF) monitoring of incomingcalls. The voice response unit 218 of the subject invention comprises aPentium™-based motherboard having various interfaces and connectors. Inone embodiment, the voice response unit comprises a housing containing ahard disk drive, a T1 card, a network (LAN) card, and PSTN interfacecard, all of which operate, in one example embodiment, under a Unix™operating system. Each voice response unit 218, configured in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention, includes additionalsoftware configured to transfer data to and from the voice printservers. In one embodiment, this software is written in C programminglanguage.

In one embodiment, the interface card comprises a Dialogic™ card. TheDialogic™ card interfaces with the T1 card to provide the functionalityof voice synthesis, and voice recording. The Dialogic™ card alsoincludes means for storing the digitized voice files before pushing thevoice files to a voice print server. Dialogic Corporation is located inNorth America at Parsippany, N.J.

In one embodiment, the voice response unit 218 includes a dual T1 accessconfiguration, thereby providing access for 48 incoming lines, 47 ofwhich are voice channels and one of which is a data channel. The datachannel in conjunction with the T1 card carries and properlyassignsautomatic number identification (ANI) data to each of the 47voice channels. In the embodiment described herein, each voice responseunit 218 is shared among various clients 110 to thereby more fullyutilize the resources of the third party verification system, althoughit is contemplated that in other embodiments each voice response unit isdedicated to a particular entity. Each client 110, (in one example, eachL.D.T.S.P.), is preferably provided a different access number todistinguish its records from those of other L.D.T.S.P.

Each of the one or more voice response units 218 connects to the network210. The network 210 may comprise any one of many various configurationsof networks available for use at the present time, such as token ring,Ethernet, or other network that may be developed in the future. Thenetwork 210 provides data routing services to hardware connectedthereto. In one embodiment, the network 210 comprises a local areanetwork.

Connecting to the network 210 are various servers 212–216. At least oneserver 212 is configured as a voice print server to store data records,including digitized voice recordings evidencing verification or consentsuch as to a change in long distance service provider. Servers 212having large storage capacity are known by those of ordinary skill inthe art and accordingly are not discussed in great detail herein. In oneembodiment, the servers 212–216 may comprise a Pentium™ based processingdevice having an array of large capacity hard disk drive storagedevices. In one embodiment, the server 212 operates under the control ofLinux™ operating system, although in other embodiments other operatingsystem may be adopted.

Each server 212 preferably includes some form of database software tocatalogue and manage each of the plurality of verification voice printrecords. One SQL-type database software well suited to this particulartask is available from Informix™ of Menlo Park, Calif. However, otherdatabase programs such as DBZ™ and Oracle™ may also be configured toachieve the function of the present invention.

Also included in server 212 are associated disk drive array controllers,network cards, I/O cards, and the like. As these types of devices areknown by those of ordinary skill in the art, their construction andoperation is not discussed in detail herein.

One or more Internet servers 230 also connect to the network 210. TheInternet server 230 hosts software responsible for operation of the website capable of providing access, via the network 210, to the voiceprint server 212 for record retrieval. Due to the wide spread expansionof the Internet 244, Internet servers are known by those of ordinaryskill in the art. In one embodiment, the Internet server 230 comprises aPentium™ based computer network server utilizing a windowsNT™ basedoperating system or a Linux™ operating system. Apache™ Web Softwarehosts the third party verification system web page to thereby allowWorld Wide Web access to the recorded verification information.

The Internet server 230 connects to the Internet 244 and the PSTN 240 tofacilitate access by a remote user, such as a L.D.T.S.P. 110, via theInternet 244 or PSTN 240.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary sample record 300 as might be recordedby a voice response unit 218 and stored on a voice print server 212operating in accordance with the subject invention. Preferably, eachrecord 300 is arranged as a number of fields of information as is commonin database records. As shown, the example record 300 comprises a recordnumber field 302 designed to identify the record at the exclusion ofother records. Also included is a name field 304, address field 306, andfields for other personal information, such as a social security numberfield 308, and birth date field 310. The personal information fields areoften used for security purposes to verify the identity of theindividual. It is anticipated that the textual information contained infields 302–310 is displayed on a computer screen or other form ofdisplay when the record is remotely accessed at a later time.Information displayed in fields 302–310 is obtained and entered by theL.D.T.S.P. caller and uploaded to the third party verification system ormay be obtained by the third party verification system in non-verbalform.

The example record also includes a digitized voice recording field 312.The voice recording field 312 contains the digitized voice recordings ofthe individuals' responses to questions posed by the voice responseunit. Examples of the types of question that are presented by the voiceresponse unit 218 include, but are not limited to, the individuals'name, address, telephone number, social security number, birth date, andthe responses to various questions posed by the voice response unit. Thevoice response unit 218 may of course be programmed with any of a numberof application-specific questions. In the example embodiment describedherein, the questions posed are directed to gain the consent from thecustomer or individual connected to the voice response unit to changelong distance telephone service providers.

Additional storage fields 314 are optionally included in the record toprovide additional flexibility to record additional information. Inother embodiments, it is contemplated that the voice or computer textscript could be adapted to record various other types of data includingbut not limited to voting, polling, purchasing, changing serviceproviders, club membership, subscription purchasing, appointmentscheduling, or other form of verification mentioned above.

Operation

In operation, the present invention may be configured to function withdata recording and retrieval interfaces via a telephone or computer. Forpurposes of brevity only the Internet access and telephone accessmethods are discussed in detail herein. However, it is contemplated thatother means of recording and accessing the data may be used to achievethe operation of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an operational flow diagram of one exemplary methodof operation of the present invention. The operation shown, customizedfor obtaining consent from a potential customer, is utilized to obtainconsent with third party verification from the potential customer. At ablock 400, the operation establishes communication with a potentialcustomer. Most often this is performed via a direct telephone connectionover the PSTN although in other embodiments the communication link mayexist over another medium.

Next, at a block 402, the operation attempts to obtain consent from thepotential customer. Most often block 402 is achieved via personal voicecommunication by a live operator who is able to express the advantagesof the proposed good or service, such as the new long distance carrierservice, and interact with the potential customer.

While the personal and interactive communication from live operatorcontact often proves most productive, the process may also be initiatedby a computerized and automated voice response unit that attempts toobtain third party verification prior to with communication from a liveoperator. Causing the voice response unit to initiate the call andobtain initial confirmation from the potential customer reduces thenumber of calls with which the live operator must interface therebyreducing the number of live operators and the cost of operation. Initialscreening may be undertaken by recognizing DTMF tones provided by thepotential customers in response to queries from the voice response unit.

Upon obtaining consent or other particular response, the operatorinitiates a communication link to a third party verification system.This occurs at a block 404.

Next, the operation branches to different routines depending on whetherthe operation will be a “blind transfer” or a “conference and transfer”type handoff. The left-hand branch of the details a blind transfer whilethe right-hand branch details a conference and transfer.

At a block 410, the operator disconnects from the line when the thirdparty verification system connects or a short time before or after thethird party verification systems connects. This is known as a blindtransfer. Next, at a block 412, the interactive voice response unit(I.V.R.U.) queries and records customer information including but notlimited to personal information regarding the potential customer. Thisinformation is temporarily stored in digital or analog format on thevoice response unit.

Next, at a block 414, the interactive voice response unit queries thepotential customer regarding consent to change long distance serviceproviders and records the response. At a block 416 the process isterminated.

Alternatively, the operator may initiate a conference and transferhandoff as shown in blocks 420–426. At a block 420, the operator stayson the line. Next, at a block 422 the operator queries the customer forpersonal information and records this information. At a block 424, theoperator queries the customer for consent to change service providers,or any other question for which recorded verification is desired. Uponobtaining consent the call is terminated, block 426.

FIG. 5 illustrates a more detailed operational flow chart of oneexemplary method of operation of third party verification recording bytelephone. This operational flow chart provides a more detaileddescription of blocks 404–416 shown in FIG. 4.

At a block 502, the voice response unit of the third party verificationsystem accepts the call from an outside party or other system, such asan operator requiring third party verification. Next at a block 504, thevoice response unit creates a record to store data from the potentialcustomer. This record, as shown in FIG. 3, may include data as from DTMFtones or recorded voice or video clips of responses.

Next, at a block 506, the operation monitors for the proper access codesfrom the party requesting access to the third party verification system.Access codes or authorization code may be automatically sent from therequesting party telephone or may be manually entered as DTMF tones.

Upon gaining access to the system, the operation progresses to a block508 wherein the voice response unit transmits or plays voice scripts tothe one or more parties connected to voice response unit, including thepotential customer. It is anticipated that at least part of the voicescript from the voice response unit requests interaction by thepotential customer. Hence, at a block 510, the voice response unitcaptures the responses to the voice scripts.

In one alternative embodiment, at least one question from the voiceresponse unit is whether the potential customer consents to a particularstatement and requests the potential customer to press a particulartelephone key to express a particular response to a question from thevoice response unit. The response of the DTMF tone directs the thirdparty verification system to one or more branches to facilitate variouslines of potential questioning.

Next, at a block 512, the voice response unit stores the voice responsesto the questions or requests posed by the voice response unit. Theseverbal responses are digitized and temporarily stored in the voiceresponse unit.

Next, the operation progresses to a decision block 514 wherein theoperation determines if the voice scripts are complete. If the voicescripts are not complete, the operation returns to a block 508 whereinadditional voice scripts are transmitted.

If at block 514, the voice script process is complete, the operationprogresses to a decision block 516. Here the operation determineswhether customer consent was provided or whether the desired responsewas obtained such that the record electronically existing in the voiceresponse unit should be written to the voice print server. If thedesired response was not obtained then the process terminates and therecord information in the voice response unit is deleted. Alternatively,the record information in the voice response unit may be stored in afile containing failed or non-consenting records.

In one embodiment, a speech recognition algorithm is utilized todetermine if the desired response was provided. In another embodiment,the voice response unit requests that in addition to a verbal response,a button be pressed to generate a DTMF tone to confirm a response.

If the potential customer provided the desired consent, the operationprogresses to a block 518, wherein the voice response unit concatenatesthe recording of the personal information and the verbal consent orverbal responses to one or more particular questions, such as a desireto change long distance service providers. Next, at a block 520, thevoice response unit forwards the data record over the network to thevoice print server for cataloging and storage.

At a block 522, a voice print server database program logs the recordinto a database storage system. Thereafter, the operation progresses toblock 524, wherein the call is terminated.

In this manner, the vocal consent of the person or entity is recordedand stored using the third party verification system such that it may beretrieved as a form of verification at a later time.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example method of operation for establishing athird party verification via the Internet. Using this example method ofoperation, a potential customer may initiate the process of changinglong distance service providers. At a block 600, the potential customerconnects to the third party verification web site and may optionallyobtain information regarding any of a number of different goods orservices, and personally select one of the goods or services topurchase.

Next, at a block 602, the operation requests that the customer enterpersonal information about himself/herself. Next, at a block 604, theoperation verifies the potential customer's personal data.

At a block 606, the operation requests the potential customer to enterand upload an identification password or ID number. The identificationpassword identifies the person to provide a verification of identity.For example, the identification password or ID number may be sent to theindividual via mail to a verified address or may be provided bytelephone at a verified telephone number. The ID number or passwordidentifies the person for establishing verification. In an alternativeembodiment, the third party verification web site detects the customer'sIP address based on ANI numbers or on packet switch data addresses.

Next, at a block 608, the operation establishes a voice link with thepotential customer to facilitate recordation of a voice sampleindicating consent to the change or query. For example, the potentialcustomer may consent to change long distance telephone service providersby transmitting a voice signal to the third party verification system.In an alternative embodiment, an audio file of the consent is recordedat the customer computer and uploaded to the third party verificationsystem. In yet another embodiment, the verification is recorded in avideo format by a camera connected to the potential customer's computeror to a general use terminal for public use. This information is storedand at a block 612, the process terminates.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary method of operation for retrieving theverification by telephone. A need exists to retrieve the recorded andstored verbal verification so that, at a later time, verification of theconsent or other response can be provided to a requesting party. Theprocess of retrieving stored verification data comprises first callingthe third party verification system, in this embodiment, by telephone ata block 700. Next, at a block 702, the calling party enters anidentification number to gain access to the system. It is anticipatedthat the calling party be the client, such as a long distance serviceprovider. In certain configurations, parties other than the client maybe provided access to the data stored in the third party verificationsystem. Other such authorized individuals include the FCC orcompetitors.

Next, at a block 704, the client enters a password as a secondrequirement to gain access to the system. In alternative embodiment,access occurs automatically based on an analysis of the caller IDinformation of the calling party.

Next, at a block 706, the calling party enters the record number forwhich the verification is being sought. In one embodiment, the recordnumber is the telephone number for which long distance service is to bechanged. In another embodiment, the record number is randomly assigned.In one embodiment, the requesting party generates DTMF tones to providethe record number. In another embodiment, speech recognition softwareoperates in conjunction with vocal input by the user to provide therecord number.

Next, at a block 708, the third party verification system providesrecord data to the requesting party so that the requesting party mayverify that the system retrieved the proper record. In one embodiment,the record data provided at a block 708 includes name, address, and somepersonal data such as birth date or mother's maiden name.

At a block 710, the requesting party connects a party to the third partyverification system so that the party connected to the third partyverification system may listen to the voice recording of the recordedconsent, block 712.

In reference to FIG. 1, the potential customer or an independent fourthparty 140 such as the FCC or a prior provider of long distance serviceto the customer may request access to the verification system. In such acase, the client would call the third party verification system and,upon obtaining the proper record, patch in or connect the FCC or priorservice provider to the call so that they can listen to the recordedverification.

FIG. 8 illustrates an operational flow diagram of yet another embodimentof the present invention of one method of retrieving verification dataover a computer network, such as the Internet. One general method ofoperation is shown in FIG. 8, wherein at a block 800, the client (userof the third party verification system) connects to a web site of thethird party verification system. Once connected, the client enters itsidentification, block 802, and password, block 804. These steps controlaccess to the web site.

Next, at a block 806, the operation queries the user for a record numberor customer number. Upon uploading the record number to the web siteserver, the web site server accesses the voice print server anddownloads to the client of the third party verification system recordinformation such as name, address and social security number of thecustomer identified by the record. This information is displayed onscreen at the client machine. This allows the client to verify that theverification system retrieved the proper record from the voice printserver.

Next, at a block 810, the operation allows the client to download theverification. In one embodiment, the verification is a voice file of thecustomer that is downloaded to the client computer via the Internet. Inanother embodiment, the verification is a video file containing videofootage of a customer that is downloaded to the client computer via theInternet. The verification provides independent and third party obtainedconfirmation that the customer consented or responded in a particularmanner to previous questions.

Next, at a block 812 the client provides the verification to thecustomer or to any party requesting the verification. In one embodiment,wherein the party seeking the verification is connected to the clientvia telephone, audio verification is played to the party over thetelephone or the audio file is transferred to the party, such as viae-mail. In another embodiment, video verification is provided to theparty via e-mail or video telephone.

FIG. 9 illustrates in detail a method of operation of retrieving thirdparty verification over a computer connection such as the Internet. In ablock 900, the client uploads a welcome screen from the third partyverification web server. Next, at a block 902, the third partyverification web server obtains and verifies the user identification andpassword against an existing database established by the operators ofthe third party verification system.

At a block 904, the web server obtains the record number from the clientaccessing the web site to gain the verification. In other embodiments,the web site is advantageously accessible by others besides the client,such as customers, government agencies, or competitors.

At a block 906, the web server accesses the voice print server to obtainthe record data. Upon finding the data, the web server causes theoperation to upload the data to the accessing party's computer anddisplay the record data on the display, block 908. Most often this dataappears as a textual display. Transfer of data via a computer network,such as the Internet, is known by those of ordinary skill in the art andaccordingly is not described in great detail herein.

If the displayed information indicates that the web server retrieved thedesired record, then at a block 910, the web server would receive arequest from the client for the verification file. The verification filemay comprise data in an audio, video, or other similar format thatprovides confirmation or verification of a response by a potentialcustomer, individual, or entity. In one example embodiment, theverification file is an audio clip of a potential long distancetelephone service customer consenting to change long distance serviceproviders.

Next, at a block 912, the web server performs a conversion process onthe voice print file to alter the alter the file to a format that may beunderstood by a personal computer connected to the computer network. Inone example embodiment, a Dialogic™ voice capture card records the voiceof the party as they respond to questions. The recorded responses areconverted to a digital format and are stored in an ADPCM format(adaptive differential pulse code modulation). In general, the ADPCMformat is not compatible with personal computers and hence it must beconverted to a new format, such as WAV format. This occurs at the block912.

Next, at a block 914, the web server uploads the converted voice printfile to the requesting party, such as for example, the client. Theclient can then listen to the voice print on their computer.Alternatively, the voice print can be patched into and played for acaller requesting verification or downloaded, such as via e-mail, to anydesired party.

At decision block 916, the web server queries the client to downloadadditional voice prints. If the client desires to access and downloadadditional voice prints, the process returns to a block 904. If theclient does not have any other voice prints to download, then theoperation progresses to a block 918, wherein the operation terminates,such as by automatically logging the client or user out of the webserver.

Voice Fingerprint System

In an alternative embodiment, the above described third partyverification system includes a voice fingerprint system configured tocompare two or more samples of voice and pattern match the voice samplesto determine if the two or more samples were spoken by the sameindividual. An embodiment of the present invention having the voicefingerprint system includes a hardware interface within the voiceresponse unit. The voice fingerprint system analyzes a voice sample,such as a person speaking their first and last name. This voice sampleanalysis is stored and may be appended to the record data or storedseparately. The voice sample is the voice fingerprint of the individual,whereby through the use of complex sampling and statistical analysis, aunique identification of the speaker's speech patterns, inflections,tone, and speech speed is created. This unique identification orfingerprint is then cataloged and stored with the particular recordnumber.

If, at a later time, the consent or response of a person is questionedor if verification beyond that provided by the process described inFIGS. 4–9 is required, the stored voice finger print may be compared toa second sample taken from the individual. For example, if theindividual refutes the recorded verification then they can call andundergo a second sampling, such as by speaking their first and lastname. The voice fingerprint system analyzes the second sample andcompares the results of the second sample to the stored results of thefirst sample. If the sample results match, then further conformation orverification is achieved. An example voice verification systemcompatible with this embodiment of the present invention is availablefrom Nuance Communications of Menlo Park, Calif.

FIGS. 10A and 10B illustrate an operational flow diagram of an exampleprocess of the present invention having speech pattern recognition. Theprocess is now discussed. Referring to FIG. 10A, at a block 1002, theoperation contacts a party to obtain consent or a particular response.Next, at a block 1004, a voice response unit proposes questions to theparty. The operation, at block 1006, records the responses to thequestions. A single or a plurality of response may be recorded.

Next, at a block 1008, the operation performs speech pattern analysis onthe recorded responses. In one embodiment the analysis occurs in realtime when the party makes the response. In another embodiment theanalysis occurs after the voice response unit records the response.

At a block 1010, the operation catalogs and stores the responses on astorage media, such as a hard disk drive. Once stored, the recordedresponse and analysis may be retrieved at a later date.

FIG. 10B is an operational flow diagram of a example method ofretrieving the stored response and analysis and performing the voiceverification. This process involves the sampling of a second speechsample so that the system can perform a second analysis and subsequentlycompare the two analyses to provide further verification of identity.

Turning now to FIG. 10B, at a block 1020, a user or requester ofverification provides a data file identifier, often in the form of anumeric identifier, to the system. This identifies the data file,containing the response and analysis data, at the exclusion of otherdata files.

Next, at a block 1022, the operation retrieves the data file from astorage device. At a block 1024, the operation plays the recording ofthe response for the requester. The playing of the response is a firstform of verification.

Next, at decision block 1026, the operation inquires whether additionalverification is required. If at block 1026 the requester desires furtherverification, the operation progresses to a block 1028, wherein thesystem obtains a second voice sample from the party in question. It iscontemplated that at least one voice response from the party be providedthat is the same word or words as contained in the first recordedresponse. The second voice sample is preferably obtained from the partywith a known identity. Thus, the identity of the second voice sampleprovider is preferably independently verified by some form ofidentification.

Next, at a block 1030, the operation performs speech pattern analysis onthe second speech sample. In one embodiment this analysis is the sametype of analysis as performed in block 1008 of FIG. 10A.

Next, at a block 1032, the operation compares the analysis results fromthe first speech pattern analysis that were retrieved from storage, withthe analysis of the second speech sample. This comparison reveals if thesame party spoke the first speech sample and the second speech sample.

Next, at block 1034, the operation provides the results of thecomparison to the requestor. These may be provided via a computernetwork, over an Internet connection, audibly over a telephoneconnection, or any other means suitable for communicating results of thecomparison. At a block 1036, the session is complete. Likewise, if atdecision block 1026 the requester does not require additionalverification, the operation progresses to block 1036 and the session iscomplete.

FIG. 11 is a combined flowchart and data flow diagram 1100 illustratingvarious components used to implement an enrollment process according tothe invention. As shown in FIG. 11, an account holder 1110 who hasreceived account from an issuer 1230 may activate his or her account bycontacting a voice response unit (VRU) 1120, for example by placing atelephone call to a telephone number associated with the VRU 1120. TheVRU 1120 may be operated directly by the issuer 1230, or by a thirdparty under contract with the issuer 1230. During an automatedinteraction between the VRU 1120 and the account holder 1110, theaccount holder 1110 may provide his or her account number along with atleast one control voice print, as represented by the arrow 1115appearing in FIG. 11, to the VRU 1120. The VRU 1120 processes thecontrol voice print as necessary, and then forwards the control voiceprint and the associated account number, as represented in FIG. 11 bythe arrow 1125, to the storage medium 1130 for storage.

The storage medium 1130 is adapted as understood by those skilled in theart to associate the control voice prints with the corresponding accountnumbers so as to facilitate search and retrieval of the control voiceprint by using the account numbers as a key or index field forsearching. The embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 11 may beused to enroll credit card holders in an automated system to verify thatsubsequent transactions associated with the issued account, such as acredit card account, are legitimate, by comparing the voice sample ofthe consumer attempting to complete the transaction with the control(s)voice print stored in the storage medium 1130 at the time of enrollment.Consistent with the known practice of having multiple authorized usersof a given credit card account, such as by issuing separate plasticcards to each one for counter-signature, the system shown in FIG. 11 canbe extended to store voice prints for each one of the several usersauthorized to access a given account.

FIG. 12 is a combined block diagram and data flow diagram 1200illustrating various components that can be used to implement systemsand methods for verifying that a consumer seeking to transact with amerchant using an account is authorized to use that account. Assume, forexample, that consumer 1210 purports to be authorized to use an account,such as a credit card account, issued by issuer 1230, and wishes totransact with the merchant 1220 using that account. Issuer 1230 mayutilize various components illustrated in FIG. 12 to verify that theconsumer 1210 is authorized to use the account, including VRU 1120,voice print comparator 1240, and storage medium 1130.

The voice response unit 1120 may be adapted to interact with theconsumer 1210 to obtain an account number and a test voice print, forexample, while conducting a telephone-based interaction with theconsumer 1210 conducted at transaction-time. The voice response unit1120 may then forward the account number to the storage medium 1130,which is adapted to search for any control voice print(s) associatedwith the input account number, and to return the same upon request tothe voice response unit 1120.

If no control voice print matches the input account number, the voiceresponse unit 1120 can notify the merchant 1220 accordingly, therebyalerting the merchant 1220 to possible fraud being attempted by theconsumer 1210. Otherwise, if the storage medium 1130 returns one or morecontrol voice prints to the voice response unit 1120, the voice responseunit 1120 forwards the control and test voice prints to a voice printcomparator 1240.

Voice print comparator 1240 functions to compare the input voice prints,and determine whether both input voice prints were spoken by the samehuman person by extracting and analyzing certain parameters associatedwith the voice prints. The voice print comparator 1240 returns a matchlevel signal to the voice response unit 1120 that indicates a level ofmatch between the input control voice print and the test voice print. Asdiscussed above, suitable technology for implementing the voice printcomparator 1240 may be available from a variety of vendors including,for example, Nuance Corporation discussed above.

Having received the match level signal from the voice print comparator1240, the voice response unit 1120 can notify the merchant 1220 whetherthe test voice print from the consumer 1210 matches any control voiceprints associated with the number of the account submitted by anauthorized user of the account, by using the enrollment methods andapparatus of FIG. 11. The VRU 1120 may forward the match level signal,or a variant of the same, to the merchant 1220, or simply give themerchant 1220 a yes-or-no response. The VRU 1120 or the merchant 1220can analyze the value assigned to the match level signal, compare it toa predefined threshold, and determine whether or not to approve thetransaction proposed by the consumer 1210. If the match level exceedsthe predefined threshold, VRU 1120 or the merchant 1220 may determinethat the risk of fraud is minimal and may be proceed with thetransaction proposed by the consumer 1210. Otherwise, if the match levelsignal falls beneath the predefined threshold, the VRU 1120 or themerchant 1220 may conclude that the risk of fraud present in thistransaction does not justify completing the transaction, and thereforemay decline the transaction proposed by the consumer 1210.

According to various illustrative embodiments of the invention, thesystems and methods illustrated in FIG. 12 and discussed herein may beespecially applicable to credit card transactions wherein the consumer1210 is geographically remote from the merchant 1220. Such remotetransactions are characterized in the art as non-face-to-facetransactions, and in the credit card context, the merchant 1220 may bearthe risk of any fraudulent transactions into which the merchant 1220inadvertently enters with consumer 1210. Accordingly, the systems andmethods illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12 and discussed herein may haveparticular applicability to enable the merchant 1220 to minimize lossesdue to fraudulent transactions inadvertently entered into with theconsumer 1210 by identifying fraudulent transactions before they occur.

While particular embodiments and examples of the present invention havebeen described above, it should be understood that they have beenpresented by way of example only and not as limitations. Those ofordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that other variousembodiments or configurations adopting the principles of the subjectinvention are possible. The breadth and scope of the present inventionis defined by the following claims and their equivalents, and is notlimited by the particular embodiments described herein.

1. Apparatus for enrolling at least one holder of at least one accountinto a system to support verification of subsequent transactionsinvolving the at least one account, the apparatus comprising at leastthe following: at least one voice response unit to capture at least onevoice print from the at least one holder; the voice response unit toassociate the at least once voice print with the at least one account;the voice response unit to request from the at least one holder a verbalresponse to a question as well as a DTMF response to confirm theresponse to the question; the voice response unit to concatenate arecording of personal information of the at least one holder with theverbal response and the DTMF response, wherein the DTMF response directsa third party verification system to one or more branches to facilitatevarious lines of potential questioning; and at least one storage mediumto store the at least one voice print and to associate the same with theat least one account held by the at least one holder.
 2. The apparatusof claim 1, wherein the at least one voice response unit is to capturethe at least one voice print while conducting a telephone-basedinteraction with the at least one holder.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the at least one voice response unit is to capture the at leastone voice print substantially at the time of activating the at least oneaccount.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one voiceresponse unit is to capture the at least a first voice print from theholder of a credit card account.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, whereinthe at least one voice response unit is to capture at least an accountnumber from the holder of the account.
 6. The apparatus of claim 5,wherein the account number is a credit card account number.
 7. Theapparatus of claim 5, wherein the at least one voice response unit is toforward at least the account number and at least the voice sample to theat least one storage medium.
 8. A method for enrolling at least oneholder of at least one account in a system to support verification ofsubsequent transactions involving the at least one account, the methodcomprising at least the following: obtaining at least one voice printfrom the at least one holder of the at least one account; obtaining atleast one account number from the at least one holder; associating theat least one voice print with the at least one account number;requesting from the at least one holder a verbal response to a questionas well as a DTMF response to confirm the response to the question;concatenating a recording of personal information of the at least oneholder with the verbal response and the DTMF response, wherein the DTMFresponse directs a third party verification system to one or morebranches to facilitate various lines of potential questioning; andstoring the at least one voice print and the at least one account numberin at least one storage medium.
 9. The method of claim 8, whereinobtaining the at least one voice print and obtaining the at least oneaccount number are performed during a telephone-based interaction withthe at least one holder.
 10. The method of claim 8, wherein obtainingthe at least one voice print and obtaining the at least one accountnumber are performed substantially during an account activationprocedure.
 11. The method of claim 8, wherein obtaining the at least oneaccount number includes obtaining at least one credit card accountnumber.
 12. The method of claim 8, wherein storing the at least onevoice print and the at least one account number includes storing the atleast one voice print and the at least one account number in a datastructure so that the account number serves as a key field to facilitatesearch for and retrieval of the at least one voice print.
 13. Apparatusfor verifying that at least one consumer seeking to conduct at least onetransaction with at least one merchant using at least one account isauthorized to use the at least one account, the at least one accountbeing identified by an account number, the apparatus comprising at leastthe following: at least one voice response unit to receive the at leastone account number and at least one test voice print associated with theat least one consumer; the voice response unit to request from the atleast one holder a verbal response to a question as well as a DTMFresponse to confirm the response to the question; the voice responseunit to concatenate a recording of personal information of the at leastone holder with the verbal response and the DTMF response, wherein theDTMF response directs a third party verification system to one or morebranches to facilitate various lines of potential questioning; andstorage medium to receive the at least one account number and return atleast one control voice print associated with the at least one accountnumber; voice print comparator to compare the at least one test voiceprint to the at least one control voice print and to return at least onematch level signal indicating a degree of match therebetween; andwherein the at least one voice response unit is further to notify themerchant whether the at least one consumer is authorized to use the atleast one account, the verification signal being responsive to the atleast one match level signal.
 14. A method of verifying that at leastone consumer seeking to conduct at least one transaction with at leastone merchant using at least one account is authorized to use the atleast one account, the method comprising at least the following:obtaining at least one test voice print from the at least one consumer;obtaining at least one account number for the account; obtaining atleast one control voice print associated with the at least one accountnumber; requesting from the at least one holder a verbal response to aquestion as well as a DTMF response to confirm the response to thequestion; concatenating a recording of personal information of the atleast one holder with the verbal response and the DTMF response, whereinthe DTMF response directs a third party verification system to one ormore branches to facilitate various lines of potential questioning;comparing the at least one control voice print to the at least one testvoice print; identifying at least one level of match between the atleast one control voice print and the at least one test; anddispositioning at least one transaction in response to the at least onelevel of match.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein obtaining at leastone test voice print is performed during a telephone-based interactionbetween the at least one consumer and at least one voice response unit.16. The method of claim 14, wherein obtaining at least one control voiceprint includes retrieving the at least one control voice print from astorage medium based on the at least one account number.
 17. The methodof claim 14, wherein obtaining at least one account number includesobtaining at least one credit card account number.
 18. The method ofclaim 14, wherein comparing the at least one control voice print to theat least one test voice print includes comparing the at least onecontrol voice print to the at least one test voice print using at leastone voice print comparator.
 19. The method of claim 14, whereindispositioning the at least one transaction includes declining thetransaction if the level of match falls beneath a predefined threshold.20. The method of claim 14, wherein dispositioning the at least onetransaction includes approving the transaction if the level of matchexceeds a predefined threshold.